Medina

Medina, archaically known as Yathrib, is a major city in Saudi Arabia that is the second-holiest site in Islam after Mecca, a city to the north of Medina. The city is located in the western Arabian Peninsula, not too far from the sea, and Medina was a trade hub during the time of the caravans in the deserts of Arabia. In 622, Muhammad and the Muslims came to Medina, which became their base against the pagan Quraysh of Mecca. Muhammad died in Medina ten years later, and Medina served as the capital of the Rashidun Caliphate from 632 to 661, when the Umayyad Caliphate took power and moved the capital to Damascus. Since then, Medina has been important mostly in religious matters; non-Muslims cannot enter the inner parts of the city. In 2010, the city had a population of 1,180,770 people, all Muslims.